The Roku Channel has now become the exclusive AVOD streaming home for The Jennifer Hudson Show.
All previously aired episodes are available beginning Thursday, and new episodes will hit the platform the day after they air.
“The authentic spirit that Jennifer Hudson brings to each episode of the series has already won over the hearts of audiences across the country, and we look forward to extending its viewership potential further to the millions of streamers reached by The Roku Channel,” said Rob Holmes, VP, Programming, Roku.
Finding additional avenues on other platforms has become crucial for high-end syndicated talk shows to survive in the current economic environment, which has been increasingly challanging for first-run fare.
Warner Bros.’ freshman The Jennifer Hudson Show got to a respectable start this fall and is currently looking good to be renewed for Season 2 by its core station group, the Fox Stations.
The Jennifer Hudson Show isn’t the first talk show Roku. Earlier this fall, the streamer became the exclusive home of The Rich Eisen Show as part of its sports “experience” rollout to create a centralized hub for sports programming.
The Jennifer Hudson Show features celebrity interviews, topical stories, community heroes, viral sensations, and music. It is produced in Los Angeles by Warner Bros. Unscripted Television in association with Telepictures and distributed in national syndication by Warner Bros. Domestic TV Distribution.
Executive producers include Mary Connelly, Andy Lassner, Corey Palent, Jennifer Hudson, Lisa Kasteler Calio, Graehme Morphy and Walter Williams III, with Shani Black as co-executive producer.
Roku had 65.4 million active accounts as of September 30, and the company estimates that it reaches about 80 million people, making it one of the primary gatekeepers of streaming in the U.S. In addition to its connected devices, Roku’s interface is on more than one-third of smart-TVs in North America.